


Fighting the Hurricane

by thewightknight



Series: Ridiculous Crossovers Nobody Asked For [17]
Category: Pacific Rim (Movies), Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Drift Compatibility, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-25
Updated: 2019-10-25
Packaged: 2021-01-03 03:53:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21172985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewightknight/pseuds/thewightknight
Summary: The Machine had shifted gears, metaphorically speaking. Terrorism now came from an external threat. Instead of social security numbers it now spit out latitudes and longitudes.





	Fighting the Hurricane

**Author's Note:**

> Another day, another crossover.

“C’mon, Elias. We’ve got a new number.”

Elias’s eyes blinked open, reminding Reese of a sunning lizard. He wasn’t sure whether Elias had actually been asleep or not. He could have been running schematics, or combat techniques, or new scams to profit off black market _kaiju_ parts. You could never tell.

Even with the drift, Elias still remained inscrutable to Reese in some ways.

Reese still remembered that day in August of 2013 – the day the Machine had first warned them that something was changing. The flood of numbers that came in when the first _kaiju_ attacked had just been the beginning.

“Where?” Elias asked at last.

“Looks like it’ll hit _Saint Tropez._”

_“_What will all the tourists do?”

It was a feeble joke. There wasn’t much left in the way of tourism, not along any coast. Two breeches had opened simultaneously, one in the Atlantic and one in the Pacific. The earthquake that had hit New York was devastating. San Francisco, at least, had some infrastructure in place to deal with that sort of disaster.

“Let’s suit up.”

They’d continued on, life as normal, after the first attack, although there were too many numbers for Reese to handle. Crime had risen, and Reese couldn’t help everyone. Even with Carter and Fusco, people still died. After the second wave, Finch had withdrawn, muttering to himself while he tapped away at his keyboard, screens flashing gibberish (as far as Reese was concerned).

Finally, Finch had shoved back from his desk, wringing his hands and rubbing at his fingers.

“It’s done,” he’d told Reese.

“What’s done?”

“You’ll see. Pack a bag,” Finch said, even more inscrutable than ever.

“Where are we going?” Reese asked.

“Korea.”

“Korea?” Finch nodded. “I don’t have a passport.”

Finch worked his magic and they were on the invite list to the conference. Jasper Schoenfeld’s talk went straight over Reese’s head, but Finch was nodding along, muttering to himself and making notes on his phone. When Finch’s name was called to present, Reese nearly fell out of his seat.

Finch got straight to the point. “Ladies and gentlemen, I have been working on a program that will predict the origination and frequency of kaiju attacks.”

The Machine had shifted gears, metaphorically speaking. Terrorism now came from an external threat. Instead of social security numbers it now spit out latitudes and longitudes. Thanks to it, they were already in place when Yamarashi and Crydorah emerged from the breaches.

Reese didn’t know why Finch had insisted he come along to Kodiak Island, not at first. There were countless others who could help the researchers and designers who were working on the Jaeger program. His fighting skills weren’t extraordinary, nor his mental acumen. But Finch insisted, so he stayed.

It wasn’t until the first pilot died from the neural overload that Finch came to him, to explain why he was here.

“The Machine predicted that one person wouldn’t be able to pilot a Jaeger alone. The theory was discounted because I couldn’t explain where the numbers had come from.” Even now, Finch was protective of the Machine. It could still do so much damage in the wrong hands, now more than ever. “My predicative model coincides with Dr. Lightcap’s research, indicating that two people can share the neural load to pilot a Jaeger.”

It took Reese a few moments to put the pieces together. “You mean me?” he asked, incredulous. “I mean, us? As a Jaeger team?”

“At least for development. There is a physicality to operating a Jaeger that is beyond me in the long run.”

They were one of the earlier pairs to drift successfully. What they learned of each other through it remained unspoken between them, except for one night. Finch referenced, briefly, what he felt when they ran through the simulations, with two strong legs beneath them. Reese already knew, but he nodded and poured them both another cup of coffee.

It had been a surprise when Elias had shown up at the Academy. He’d been granted amnesty at some point after the first attack, for reasons Reese considered insufficient, but he wasn’t in charge of anything except his half of an experimental Jaeger.

Finch had suggested (insisted) that he try to drift with Elias. Reese learned later that it had been Elias’ suggestion initially. He'd been resistant at first, but after the next attack he acquiesced, and here they were now.

The unfortunately named (in Reese’s opinion) Yankee Liberty was a Mark 3. They were assured the shielding would protect them from the radiation issues of the previous Marks. Reese didn’t trust them. Finch concurred with their findings and Reese trusted him, and so a new Ranger team was born.

Nowadays Finch spent most of his time with two of the scientists from K-Science. Reese will see him in the mess sometimes, usually sitting across from Dr. Gottleib and Dr. Newton, watching them with that little smile of his. Occasionally he’ll interject and the other two will stop, stare at him in silence for a few moments, and then start up again, hands waiving and voices rising.

And Reese? He and Elias hunt _kaiju_. How much longer, he’s not sure. They’ve started decommissioning Shatterdomes, even as Finch and Gottleib are predicting a shorter timeline between events. A wall is being built which is supposed to remove the need for Jaegers.

The Machine isn’t happy about this, Finch says, but he can’t say that to anyone but Reese, not without endangering their secret. It had done its job too well, though. The powers that be had decided that pinpoint nuclear strikes were more cost effective than the Jaegers. Only time would tell, Reese supposed.

As they suited up, with the techs chattering around them as they ran their diagnostics, Elias asked, “What’s this one called?”

“Garnansos.”

“Who’s responsible for that?”

Reese grimaced. “Newt, probably.”

Elias snorted. “Of course.”

They don’t speak after that. They don’t need to. Elias had been right, no matter how much Reese didn’t want to admit it. They were alike, at least in the ways that mattered.

Yankee Liberty loomed before them, all gold and verdigrised copper. As they strapped in and prepped for the neural handshake, Elias asked, “Ready to go do the things that civilized people can’t, Reese?”

Reese didn’t answer. He didn’t need to.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you want to say hi, [check out my profile](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewightknight/profile) for where I’m currently hanging out on this here internet thing. If you liked this, please share! Kudos are love and comments are always appreciated.


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